WASHINGTON - The bookmakers probably are having a hard time figuring out how the vice presidential candidates will fare during Thursday’s debate.
Republican vice presidential hopeful Sarah Palin has had a tough couple of weeks — giving convoluted answers in television interviews with CBS News not to mention a few conservative stalwarts urging the man atop the ticket, John McCain, drop her because of her apparent lack of depth.
Yet several articles, Politico and the New York Times to name a couple, have surfaced detailing the debating prowess Palin exhibited during the 2006 Alaska governor’s race — pointing to her past self-confidence as well as expertise on some issues like energy.
Her sparring partner for Thursday night, Democratic vice-presidential hopeful Joe Biden is no shoe-in for winning the debate either. While the McCain campaign is quick to point out his lengthy service in the Senate where debate is an art form, he has delivered his own gaffes, as noted by another NY Times piece and the Boston Globe.
Biden is famous for his lengthy replies to questions and his periodic foot-in-mouth mistakes, such as quipping that maybe rival Hillary 
Clinton might have been a better running mate for presidential hopeful Barack Obama or that one of his own campaign’s advertisements was awful.
Coincidentally, as this blog was being written, a pitch from BetOnline.com landed saying Palin is a heavy underdog, 3-to-1, to win the debate.
One thing is a good bet. The vice-presidential debate is likely to get better viewership than last week’s presidential debate — not including all the comedians looking for new gaffes to exploit for Saturday Night Live and other shows.
Click here for more Reuters 2008 campaign coverage.
- Photo credit: Reuters/Stephen Mally (Palin speaks at a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on Sept. 18); Mitch Dumke (Biden speaks to the National Jewish Democratic Council’s conference in Washington on Sept. 23.)
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9 comments so far
To this woman there is 2 USA’S the one that she lives in way up there in the outskirts of Russia which if she was asked what part of Russia they are located in she would probly say the western half. Then theres the real Usa where the REAL America is. She probly dont even know that Washington D.C. is not located in Washington state. Come on Katie ask her, we all want to know..
- Posted by ohnoweintroubleI’ll probably just watch the recap on Saturday Night Live instead.
Did you note that in SNLs skit last Saturday, all Tiny Fey really did was repeat verbatim Palin’s answers to previous interview questions?
And they were still very funny.
Ouch.
- Posted by jvillPalin will win hands-down. Her job is easier: all she has to do is not drool on herself and the voters will mistake her lack of total stupidity for competence. Biden has to delicately balance being too aggressive with not allowing Palin off the hook for her lack of substance.
- Posted by Steven LWe’re not electing the best debater. We’re electing someone who has the qualifications to be president at a moment’s notice. Sarah Palin is a formidable ideologue but she has no experience in any of the issues that matter most to this country right now.
- Posted by JimFor all the media-buy in of the artificial “expectations game,” the bar to clear for Palin will be Presidential stature. The main if not only question to be answered in the public mind is does she have the capacity to govern.
- Posted by MarcpatriotThere are two questions I’d like to see put to Ms. Palin during Thursday’s V.P. debate, or in her next interview (if she ever has another).
Actually, Gibson or Couric (let’s forget Murdoch’s “hired-hand Hannity”) should have already asked these questions:
1.) Why did you as mayor of Wasilla force female rape-victims reporting the crime to pay out of their own pocket for the forensic-kit and exam needed in the work-up (see NYT 9/26/08)?
2.) Was your policy of requiring rape-victims to pay for their own forensic exams a result of your publicly stated belief that even women who become pregnant as a result of rape should be required to carry that pregnancy to full term and birth?
I see no reason why Palin, as candidate for the office of Vice President of the USA, and with a 1 in 3 chance of taking over as President in the next 4 years, should continue to be shielded from answering these questions publicly.
- Posted by fbla1805I was leaning towards voting for McCain until I got a load of this piece of work. Sarah Palin isn’t even qualified to be Gov. of Alaska. Anyone who makes George Bush look like a genius doesn’t deserve to be anywhere near the White House.
- Posted by mikejones@fbla1805
Seeing as you seem to flout this over any article that mentions Palin can I first get you to check your facts?
Palin did not institute it, it was the previous govenor. While there was debate over it that she could have stopped, I think she would have risked alienating a coworker when she just started in that position. Try to look at it from a realistic standpoint rather than sticking to one point that is incorrect.
So before you tout your self-righteousness that you find so awful in Palin, try looking in a mirror yourself, you will see someone that doesn’t know what they are talking about and focuses on what the media spews out rather than doing some fact checking yourself.
Good luck in your life but it is already a sad one.
- Posted by BenBen-
So let me get this straight, we’re supposed to be okay with the fact that Palin didn’t use her powers to prevent rape victims from having to pay for their own kit because she would have “risked alienating a coworker”? Hmmm… On the one hand women who have just been through a horrible experience should be made to feel like it’s somehow their fault, and that they should have to pay for it, but on the other hand… well, Palin doesn’t alienate somebody who thinks it’s okay to further victimize rape victims. Great call… Also, check you’re own self-righteousness since you see fit to tell others they don’t know what they are talking about with quite a bit of assumed authority then feel the need to use perjoratives in your closing. How sad is your life that you think it’s okay to allow immorality to avoid hurting peoples feelings and then you try to hurt somebody’s feelings? When you resort to insulting others, you don’t make your point seem any better- it just makes you sound like you have nothing worthwile to say. Hey I just had a thought… we probably shouldn’t pass this bailout bill- we might alienate someone who is responsible for the problem in the first place.
- Posted by Jim M.